Highlights of the March Sky. . .

- - - 1st - - - New 3:00 am EST Prime Focus

- - - 8thth - - - A Publication of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society First Quarter Moon 8:27 am EST November 2013 March 2014 - - - 9thth - - - Daylight Saving Time begins at 2:00 am. This Months KAS Events PM: Jupiter is ~7º above a This Months Events Waxing Gibbous Moon.

- - - 16thth - - - General Meeting: Friday, March 7 @ 7:00 pm Full Moon 1:08 pm EDT Kalamazoo Area Math & Science Center - See Page 10 for Details

- - - 17thth → 18th - - - PM: Spica and Mars form a Full Moon Theater: Saturday, March 15 @ 7:00 pm transforming triangle with the Moon. WMU Rood Hall - Room 1110 - See Page 3 for Details

- - - 20thth - - - DAWN: Use binoculars to Workshop: Saturday, March 22 @ 4:00 pm see Zubenelgenubi () just left of the Optics Cleaning Workshop - Sunnyside Church - See Page 9 for Details Moon, with Saturn well to their left. Observing Session: Saturday, March 29 @ 7:00 pm Vernal equinox: Spring begins at 12:57 pm EDT. Messier Marathon - Richland Township Park

- - - 21st - - - DAWN: Saturn is about 4º to the right of a Waning Gibbous Moon. Inside the Newsletter. . . Inside the Newsletter. . . - - - 23rdrd - - - Last Quarter Moon February Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 9:46 pm EDT Board Meeting Minutes...... p. 2 PM: The shadows of Io and Observations...... p. 3 Ganymede fall on Jupiter simultaneously from 10:08 Full Moon Theater...... p. 3 pm to 10:32 pm EDT. pm to 10:32 pm EDT. A.L. Observing Programs...... p. 4

- - - 27thth - - - Geology and the Race to the Moon...p. 5 DAWN: is about 3º to the lower right of a thin NASA Space Place...... p. 7 Waning Crescent Moon. March Night Sky...... p. 8 - - - 30thth - - - KAS Board & Announcements...... p. 9 New Moon 2:45 pm EDT General Meeting Preview...... p. 10

www.kasonline.org

FEBRUARY BOARD Meeting Minutes Meeting Minutes

The general meeting of the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society The monthly board meeting of the KAS was held on was brought to order by President Richard Bell on Friday, February 9, 2014. Richard Bell brought the meeting to order February 7, 2014 at 7:16 pm. Approximately 52 members at 5:10 pm. Other board members in attendance were Joe and guests were in attendance at the Kalamazoo Area Math Comiskey, Mike Dupuis, Rich Mather (attending via Skype & Science Center (KAMSC). from North Carolina), Jack Price, and Don Stillwell. Other attendees were Mike Cook, Jean DeMott, and Mike Patton. Our special guest speaker for the evening was Dr. Robb Gillespie, an Assistant Professor with the Department of Rich Mather gave the treasurer’s report, which included a Geosciences at Western Michigan University. Dr. Gillespie cash flow summary from November 30, 2013 - February 7, has been at WMU since 2002, but this was his first 2014. The total income included a Pfizer matching gift of presentation for the KAS. The title of his presentation was $737.50. The Robotic Telescope Fund is currently at Geology and the Race to the Moon. Dr. Gillespie wrote a $65,500. rather lengthy abstract for his presentation and it sums up Upcoming KAS events in February and March were nearly everything discussed in his excellent talk. His th abstract/article begins on page 5 of this issue. discussed. The March 7 general meeting will feature Joe Comiskey’s presentation on lunar observing. On March 15th,

Richard gave his monthly President’s Report after the snack the recent film Gravity is slated for the Full Moon Theater at WMU’s Rood Hall beginning at 7pm. The Messier Marathon break. He began by reading a letter we received from former th member Joe Medsker. Joe has decided to part with his is scheduled for March 29 at Richland Township Park. Rich extensive collection of lens grinding equipment. He also has Mather is planning to make arrangements with the park several telescopes he wished to give away. Greg Sirna said personnel.

he planned to contact Joe about picking up his lens grinding Progress on the Robotic Telescope Project includes a recent equipment. Greg send he had ample room to store the purchase of a Paramount ME II mount. The purchase was equipment on his property and would make it available for made to take advantage of a significant price break. KAS members to use. Contact us if you’d like to be kept up- Members of the task force will test the mount after it arrives. to-date. Richard also mentioned that he mailed out the first Richard has sent a grant proposal to the Cook Nuclear Power grant for the Robotic Telescope Project. We’ll find out if it Plant to further fund this project. Other possible grant was successful in early April. proposals were also discussed.

Observing reports were few and far between. It was clear the Other old business topics included Astronomy Day and the night of the meeting and many members saw the Moon on general meeting schedule. Richard and Jean have arranged the way into Old Central. Others reported glimpsing Jupiter for use of the Portage District Library for Astronomy Day. with their unaided eyes. Richard Bell talked about the light th A few open slots remain on the calendar for the 2014 general pillars visible on January 28 and how his photos received a meetings. In addition, the Nature Center has been arranged little bit of publicity for the KAS. Mark Miller also saw for the June and July General Meetings. some dogs and a Sun pillar recently. New business items included two community outreach Mike Sinclair mentioned a recent video on Vimeo featuring events. Science Night occurs at Vicksburg Middle School the time lapse photography of the northern lights from Abisko evening of March 5th, and five to six KAS volunteers will be National Park in Sweden (Mike said Iceland, but we believe needed. Also, KAS volunteers will be needed in mid-June he meant Sweden). We also discussed the possible premature for youth activities at the “Blast into Space” Camp held at fate of the Chinese lunar rover Yutu (or Jade Rabbit). the Air Zoo. Engineers feared the rover might not survive the long lunar night due to a technical glitch. More recent reports state the Other new business involved opportunities for maintaining death of Yutu might be greatly exaggerated. Jean DeMott and upgrading telescopes. First, an optics cleaning workshop mentioned that SpaceX could build its first commercial is slated for the afternoon of March 22nd (see page 9 for orbital launch facility near Brownsville, Texas. details). Second, upgrades to the Owl Observatory telescope are being considered, including purchasing an Orion Finally, Jean DeMott presented a check for $1,500 from HDX110 mount, as well as a Moonlight focuser. proceeds from her plant sale. Total proceeds raised by Jean exceed $13,000! The Robotic Telescope fund-raiser is now The meeting was adjourned at 6:41 pm. The next board over $65,500! The meeting concluded at 9:28 pm. meeting will be held at 5pm on March 9th at Sunnyside.

Prime Focus Page 2 March 2014

Join us for the next ObservationsObservations by Richard S. Bell Full Moon Theater

Yours truly has been very busy lately. How busy? I’m glad you asked. Busier than a gopher on a golf course; busier than Saturday, March 15 @ 7:00 pm

a one-eyed cat watching two mouse holes; busier than a cobra at a mongoose convention; busier than a cat in a room WMU Rood Hall - Room 1110 full of rocking chairs; busier than a weatherman in a tornado; busier than a one-legged man in an...Well, you get the idea! Looking for a little free astronomical entertainment? Then My KAS “To Do” list has been very full as of late. join us for the next installment of Full Moon Theater. The KAS will provide the popcorn and soft drinks, but feel free The first half of the is always very hectic for me. First, to bring some snacks to share with members and guests. Just I need to find guest speakers at our general meetings. be sure to show up and have a great time! Normally that’s not too hard, but it has been unusually difficult this year. Fortunately, Dr. Robb Gillespie agreed to Our feature presentation... speak at our February meeting. It was a fine presentation and he’s already volunteered to give another talk next year. Our newest board member, Joe Comiskey, volunteered to speak at the March 7th meeting. I’m looking forward to his talk on observing the Moon, even though I detest that dead rock.

Another thing that always takes a lot of time and effort is membership renewal. Some of you quickly renew when the time comes, but others that procrastinate every year. That’s okay. I’m not complaining or anything (okay, maybe a little). I am grateful for your continued support of the KAS and its mission. It’s just that sending out renewal e-mails, or worse, stuffing old-school envelopes and snail mailing them can get a little monotonous. Once you join or renew we need to get you a membership card. Often times I have board members help me stuff envelopes, but this year the timing didn’t work Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is a brilliant engineer on out so I did it all myself. her first shuttle mission with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (George Clooney). On a seemingly routine Another huge task at the moment is planning and preparation spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving for Astronomy Day 2014. This year’s annual outreach Stone and Kowalski completely alone, tethered to nothing extravaganza takes place on May 10th at the Portage District but each other and spiraling out into the darkness. As fear Library. Jean DeMott and I have already met with library turns to panic, every gulp of air eats away at what little staff to discuss activities and publicity. This year’s theme oxygen is left. But the only way home may be to go farther will be “The Night Sky.” We have another great keynote out into the terrifying expanse of space. speaker planned, so stay tuned. I’ll be contacting MANY of you in the weeks to come about volunteering. You know the date, so mark your calendars now!

The other thing I’ve been very busy with recently is grant writing for the Robotic Telescope Project. The first grant was submitted in early February and we should learn its fate in early April. I’m busily working on two other grants right now. I have received valuable input from Joe Borrello, Frank Directions to Rood Hall

Severance, and Molly Williams. Hopefully we’ll receive Head north up the Howard Street hill from the intersection of good news on all the grants by June. That’s enough to keep Howard and Stadium Drive. Turn right onto W. Michigan anyone busy and I haven’t even mentioned the newsletter, Avenue and then go left at the round-a-bout. Turn right into website, storage organizing (thanks to Jean DeMott, Bob the employee/student parking lot. Parking is perfectly safe Havira, and Don Stilwell for their help), and this whole KAS and free for anyone all day on Saturday. Rood Hall is apparel thing that came up sooner than anticipated. Oh yes, located just past Everett Tower. For further directions please there’s my actual paying job as well! visit KAS Online.

Prime Focus Page 3 March 2014 ObservingObserving ClubsClubs Motivate & Direct Your Viewing

by Roger Williams

Have you had the experience of waiting days for clear All require keeping observing logs that include specified data viewing weather and then finding excuses for not setting up fields. Most of the targets can be downloaded as lists from all of your equipment when a good night finally presents the A.L. site, but a few (i.e., the Globular Cluster Club) itself? One way to maintain enthusiasm for getting out under require buying a guidebook. Finally, some certificates are the sky is to have a long-range viewing plan or goal. As a awarded based on confirmation of the observations by your member of the KAS, you are also automatically a member of ALCOR, while others require a copy of the observing log to the Astronomical League. This makes you eligible to receive be submitted to a specified A.L. representative. So find a observing awards from a large variety of observing clubs. club that fits with your interests, learn the rules, and get out These are summarized on KAS Online’s Astroweb Yellow there under the skies! It is time for more KAS member Pages, with links to the A.L. site. Each club has a set of names to be added to those awards lists. required observations or activities to be carried out and documented. After verification of the observing logs, A.L. Here’s a breakdown of observing clubs completed by past awards a certificate and a pin. and present KAS members:

There are appropriate clubs for every level of experience and Binocular Messier Club equipment. For the new enthusiast, a planisphere and Richard Bell, Mike Cook, Becky Csia, Michael Dupuis, eyeballs are all that is needed to carry out the observations of Mark Miller, Eric Schreur, and Mike Sinclair. the Hunter Club or Universe Sample Club. Add a pair of binoculars, and you can do the Lunar Club, Comet Observers Club Sky Puppy Club (children 10 or younger), or Binocular Roger Williams Messier Club. For telescopic observations, several levels of difficulty are presented. Deep Sky Binocular Club Richard Bell, Mark Miller, and Mike Sinclair. The Messier Club requires observation of 70 of the 110 M- objects, with an Honorary certificate available for Double Club observation of all 110 (there are eight KAS members on the Richard Bell, Michael Dupuis, Jim Kurtz, Mark Miller, and Messier Club list). Moving up in difficulty, the Herschel 400 Mike Sinclair. Club chooses 400 NGC objects from the Herschel catalog

that are not on the Messier list. Two members (Mark Miller Globular Cluster Program and Robert Wade) have completed this list. An even greater challenge is offered by the Herschel II Club, with a list of Mike Cook another 400 NGC objects. Other observing clubs concentrate on asteroids, comets, double (five KAS members Herschel 400 Club completed this one, the last in 2009), meteors, , and Mark Miller and Robert Wade. the Sun. Lunar Club While some of the observing programs require dark skies Richard Bell, Mike Cook, Becky Csia, Mark Miller, Mike and large-aperture telescopes, others are deliberately oriented Sinclair, and Don Stilwell. towards mediocre viewing conditions. The Urban Observing Club actually requires that light pollution should prevent the Messier Club Milky Way from being visible to the naked eye. Richard Bell, Mike Cook, Michael Dupuis, Mark Miller, Eric Schreur, Don Stilwell, Mike Sinclair, and Henry Van Whatever program is chosen, it is important to learn the Gamert. details of the requirements from the A.L. website before beginning observations, because the rules differ. Programs Southern Sky Binocular Club that want to teach recognizing the skies and finding deep-sky Mark Miller objects may prohibit using GOTO telescopes and computers to find the objects. Those that concentrate more on observing Universe Sampler the objects may allow any method of finding them. Some are strictly visual, while others may allow or even Jeff Kavanaugh, Christopher Sinclair, Karen Sinclair, recommend imaging. Kimberly Sinclair, and Mike Sinclair.

Prime Focus Page 4 March 2014 Earth’s moon has been a source of fascination since the beginning of mankind. It has set our calendar, inspired romance, added to our vocabulary, provided countless movie storylines, influenced crime rates and has supposedly even caused the appearance of werewolves. We grew up as children being told that the Moon is “made of green cheese,” and that the pattern on the Moon’s surface shows the face of “the man-in-the-Moon.” The ancient Greeks thought that the dark areas of the Moon were large seas which they termed “maria,” terminology that persists to this day.

Putting a man on the Moon was always thought to be an extremely remote, far-in-the-future (if ever) possibility. But that changed beginning with the V-1 and V-2 German missile programs during World War II. Rocket capabilities This 1957 Romanian stamp commemorates the Russian rapidly blossomed after WWII as the new cold-war politics dog Laika, the first living creature to ever the Earth and national security concerns fueled intercontinental onboard Sputnik 2 on November 3, 1957. ballistic missile warfare concerns. apparent that better organizational management was also The newly minted superpowers, the United States and the needed to maximize results. Ultimately, in 1958, the various Soviet Union, squared-off with each other to insure that they U.S. organizations were joined together under a newly were the ones to have the largest, fastest, and most powerful created Federal Department – NASA (National Aeronautics missiles in the world. But, throughout the 1950s, support for and Space Administration). funding these military programs came to rely less on arguments for defense, and more heavily on promises of Space technology grew by leaps and bounds in both the technical achievements and scientific advancement. Small, United States and the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union took disjointed aeronautical programs in the United States gained an early lead with Sputnik (the first satellite to orbit the Earth stature and importance as they addressed these technical - October, 1957), Laika (the first dog in space – November, aspects. Despite high funding levels, it quickly became 1957) and Yuri Gagarin (the first astronaut in space – April, 1961). The “Space Race” became official on September 12, 1962 when President Kennedy announced to a Houston, Texas audience that the United States was dedicating itself to putting a man on the Moon, and returning him safely, within the decade. Meanwhile, U.S. rockets continued to explode on the launch pad.

But that changed. America’s “best and brightest” flocked to work in the space program and related aerospace industries. The Seven Astronauts were named, and the U.S. had a whole new set of instant heroes. The U.S. space program advanced through the one-man Mercury and two- man Gemini programs. Then, as the three-man Apollo 8 capsule completed its orbit around the Moon, the U.S. had finally caught-up with the Soviet Union, and moved into the lead. The iconic “Earthrise” photograph taken by Apollo 8 crewmember Bill Anders on December 24, 1968. Technical advances resulting from the space program were

Prime Focus Page 5 March 2014 finding new markets in the United States almost daily. Computers, solar panels, advanced batteries, freeze-dried food, “Tang” orange drink, and all manner of technical things we take for granted today were changing America. But the costs were staggering, and balanced budgets were being called for. Technical arguments were plentiful, but in the minds of most Americans, not enough to offset the ever increasing costs. What carried the day, and kept the funding coming, were the scientific considerations. These science issues centered around four basic questions, all of them geological in nature: (1) How old is the Moon?, (2) What is The Jade Rabbit (Yutu) rover is seen here making tracks its composition?, (3) Can the surface support the weight of a away from the lander just before it goes into hibernation landing craft or human being?, and (4) How did the Moon for the two-week-long lunar night. form?

The “Ranger” and “Surveyor” missions conducted prior to the Moon landing answered questions about the Moon’s Yutu (Jade Rabbit), China's first Moon rover, imaged by surface and weight bearing capabilities. But, it would not be the Chang'e 3 lander on December 14, 2013. until the Apollo 11 astronauts returned to Earth with 47 pounds of lunar materials that the other three questions Once lunar materials were available for radiometric age would be answered. What very quickly became apparent was dating, it was determined that various features and materials that almost everything we had supposedly known about the of the Moon ranged between 3.2 and 4.5 billion old. Moon’s age, composition and formational history was New models were developed to explain how the Moon wrong. The “Scientific Method” got a vigorous workout as probably formed when Earth collided with another body current theories were rejected and new hypothesis were about the size of Mars, destroying that body, remaking Earth, formulated to explain new facts. We now had a whole new and providing the materials that formed the Moon. The maria set of questions. were confirmed to be ancient impact basins subsequently filled with molten basalt from deeper inside the Moon, and the heavily cratered uplands were determined to be part of the original lunar crust composed not of basalt, but of anorthosite. Lunar events and stratigraphy were just beginning to fall into place.

Ironically, neither of the two leaders who were most involved in starting the “Space Race” in 1962 (Kennedy in the United States and Krushev in the Soviet Union) would be in power in July, 1969 when the United States landed the first two men on the Moon. After that initial success, it didn’t take long for U.S. Moon landings to become routine, and by late 1970, the general public was already getting bored. Other issues were taking center stage, and funding for the space program waned. One-by-one, the last five Moon missions were canceled, and Apollo 17 made the last lunar landing in December, 1972.

Today, attention is turning back to the Moon. The U.S. “LaCross” mission in 2009 confirmed the presence of water on the Moon (something we thought improbable after the lunar landings and examination of the lunar samples back on Earth). The “Grail” mission has recently completed mapping the entire gravitational field of the Moon, and new hypotheses concerning the Moon’s interior are now in the making. Most recently, the Chinese have landed a rover on the Moon (very similar to the 1972 “Lunakhod” rover landed on the Moon by the Soviet Union). Could this possibly herald the beginning of a renewed space race? Neil Armstrong took this photograph of Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin during the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon’s Sea of Tranquility on July 20, 1969. Dr. Robb Gillespie is an Assistant Professor with the Department of Geosciences at Western Michigan University.

Prime Focus Page 6 March 2014 A Two-Toned Wonder from the Saturnian Outskirts

by Dr. Ethan Siegel

Although Saturn has been known as long as humans have been watching the night sky, it's only since the invention of the telescope that we've learned about the rings and of this giant, gaseous world. You might know that the largest of Saturn's moons is Titan, the second largest moon in the entire Solar System, discovered by Christiaan Huygens in 1655. It was just 16 years later, in 1671, that Giovanni Cassini (for whom the famed division in Saturn's rings — and the NASA mission now in orbit there — is named) discovered the second of Saturn's moons: Iapetus. Unlike Titan, Iapetus could only be seen when it was on the west side of Saturn, leading Cassini to correctly conclude that not only was Iapetus tidally locked to Saturn, but that its trailing hemisphere was intrinsically brighter than its darker, leading hemisphere. This has very much been confirmed in modern times!

In fact, the darkness of the leading side is comparable to coal, while the rest of Iapetus is as white as thick sea ice. its orbit, Phoebe is constantly bombarded by micrometeoroid Iapetus is the most distant of all of Saturn's large moons, -sized (and larger) objects, responsible for not only its dented with an average orbital distance of 3.5 million km, but the and cavity-riddled surface, but also for a huge, diffuse ring of culprit of the mysterious dark side is four times as distant: dust grains spanning quadrillions of cubic kilometers! The Saturn's remote, captured moon, the dark, heavily cratered presence of the "Phoebe Ring" was only discovered in 2009, Phoebe! by NASA's infrared-sensitive Spitzer Space Telescope. As

the Phoebe Ring's dust grains absorb and re-emit solar Orbiting Saturn in retrograde, or the opposite direction to radiation, they spiral inwards towards Saturn, where they Saturn's rotation and most of its other Moons, Phoebe most smash into Iapetus — orbiting in the opposite direction — probably originated in the Kuiper Belt, migrating inwards like bugs on a highway windshield. Was the dark, leading and eventually succumbing to gravitational capture. Due to edge of Iapetus due to it being plastered with material from Phoebe? Did those impacts erode the bright surface layer away, revealing a darker substrate?

In reality, the dark particles picked up by Iapetus aren't enough to explain the incredible brightness differences alone, but they absorb and retain just enough extra heat from the Sun during Iapetus' day to sublimate the ice around it, which resolidifies preferentially on the trailing side, lightening it even further. So it's not just a thin, dark layer from an alien moon that turns Iapetus dark; it's the fact that surface ice sublimates and can no longer reform atop the leading side that darkens it so severely over time. And that story — only confirmed by observations in the last few years — is the reason for the one-of-a-kind appearance of Saturn's incredible two-toned moon, Iapetus!

Learn more about Iapetus here: http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/science/moons/iapetus Images credit: Saturn & the Phoebe Ring (middle) - NASA / JPL-Caltech / Keck; Iapetus (top left) - NASA / Kids can learn more about Saturn’s rings at NASA’s Space JPL / Space Science Institute / Cassini Imaging Team; Place: Phoebe (bottom right) - NASA / ESA / JPL / Space Sci- ence Institute / Cassini Imaging Team. http://spaceplace.nasa.gov/saturn-rings

Prime Focus Page 7 March 2014 MarchMarch NightNight Sky...... Sky......

This star map is property of the This map represents the sky at the Kalamazoo Astronomical Society. NORTH following local standard times: However you may make as many  Late February 10 pm copies as you wish free-of-charge, so long as it is for non-profit  Early March 9 pm educational purposes and full  Late March 8 pm credit is given to the KAS.  Early April 7 pm www.kasonline.org EAST WEST

SOUTH

Waning Gibbous Moon, brilliant sunrise on March 20th. The garish light of means the Sun is on the celestial equator AA red-orange Mars, and Spica form a the Moon will wash out the 3rd heading northward. So long winter! You right angle triangle on March 17th. The magnitude star, so binoculars are will NOT be missed! trio morph into an isosceles triangle on recommended. Look for Saturn about 9º March 18th. east of the Moon. The shadows of Io and Ganymede will be simultaneously cast on Jupiter’s cloud The Moon will be 1.5º right of the double March 20th also marks the first day of tops on March 23rd. The dual shadow star Zubenelgenubi (Alpha Librae) before spring in the northern hemisphere. This transit last from 10:08 - 10:32 pm EDT. KAS BOARD March 2014 Page 9 PRESIDENT

Richard S. Bell 373-8942 VolunteersVolunteers NeededNeeded @@ ScienceScience NightNight VICE PRESIDENT

Jack Price The KAS has been asked to parcipate in the tenth 343-3193 annual Science Night at Vicksburg Middle School

TREASURER (located at 348 East Prairie St.). Members are

Rich Mather needed to help setup and take down classroom 629-5312 displays, hand out KAS literature, and answer quesons from students and parents. Members SECRETARY/ALCOR are also needed to setup telescopes outside if

Roger Williams skies are clear. Please contact us if you’d like to 375-4867 lend a helping hand.

MEMBERS-AT-LARGE th Joe Comiskey Wednesday, March 5 , 6 - 8 pm | Vicksburg Middle School 329-4251

Mike Dupuis 668-6373

Scott Macfarlane 679-2865 It’s been a long, cold, and cloudy winter. Let’s hope the worse is behind us and clear skies are ahead! There could Don Stilwell be one problem though: your opcs might be dirty! To 963-5856 help get your observing gear in shape the KAS is offering an opcs cleaning workshop. The KAS will supply dislled E-MAIL a BOARD MEMBER water, isopropyl alcohol, and coon balls. Please bring anything else you think you’ll need or would like to share. Bring your telescopes, eyepieces, binoculars, filters, and more. We’ll help you get them into p top shape. There is no fee, but this workshop is for KAS members only.

Saturday, March 22nd @ 4:00 pm | Sunnyside Church - 2800 Gull Road Messier Marathon The work of comet-hunter and nebulae cataloger Charles Messier comes alive in March of each year as amateur astronomers participate in a one night search for all of the objects in his catalog of nebulae, star clusters and . By a quirk of fate, we are fortunate that most of the objects Messier and Méchain took 24 years to discover can be observed in one night around the time of the vernal equinox. Members are encouraged to bring a good pair of binoculars or a telescope and participate in this one night race across the sky.

Saturday, March 29th @ 7:00 pm | Richland Township Park - 6996 N. 32nd St. General Meeting Preview

Do you think of our moon as a bright menace to deep sky observing or as a celesal masterpiece to behold? In this presentaon, we’ll take the laer view as we consider the Moon’s many mesmerizing aributes. More features are visible on our nearest neighbor than any other object in the sky. Details in craters, mountains, rills, lava flows and much more can be seen even with inexpensive telescopes. Lunar observing can be done where light polluon is bad, and even when skies are hazy. Moreover, these lunar views change daily and even hourly as the Moon our . As we sample the lunar landscape from limb to terminator edge, Joe hopes to inspire you to observe it for yourself.

Friday, March 7 @ 7:00 pm

Kalamazoo Area Math & Science Center 600 West Vine • Use Dutton St. Entrance • No Entry after 7:10 pm

Kalamazoo Astronomical Society c/o KAMSC STAMP 600 West Vine, Suite 400 Kalamazoo, MI 49008

© March 2014, Stargazer Productions